MEDWAY - More than 100 parents, town officials and educators aired their concerns at Medway Middle School Thursday evening regarding the Common Core State Standards and the PARCC test.The forum was organized by Medway Matters – Parents Against Common Core/PARCC, a group of parents that is demanding more information about the implementation of the standards and the PARCC (Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers) test, which is being piloted in 14 Medway classrooms.The standards, a federal education initiative, detail what students should know in English language arts and mathematics by the end of each grade. Many say the state's standards were already among the best in the country.Jamie Gass, director of the Center for School Reform with the Pioneer Institute, said Massachusetts, a leader in public education, had "the most to lose in the whole discussion."He said an independent study comparing the state's standards to Common Core concluded that the latter are "significantly lower." The standards, he said, aim to cut classic literature, drama and poetry from curriculum by 60 percent, and math standards "top out at Algebra II.""If your child was interested in STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) fields, Common Core is a road to nowhere," he said.The standards, he said, aim to train students for jobs, "not to educate them to be full, thoughtful citizens." Additionally, he contended the government violated federal law that prevents federal intervention in local education.Gass also raised questions about the funding for Common Core, as 90 percent of education funding comes from the state and local level.For Massachusetts alone, Gass said a team of researchers concluded that it would cost $350 million to implement "demonstrably lower standards.""The fact is, people that are driving this are in Washington, D.C.," he said. "They think a one-size-fits-all approach is the way to go."Sandra Stotsky, former senior associate commissioner in the state Department of Education and former member of the Common Core Validation Committee, said the people responsible for the state’s adoption of the standards in July 2010 were unqualified.She said four major groups were excluded from contributing to developing the standards – parents, teachers, state legislators and school board members. She added that three private groups developed the standards, therefore "basic information" about the process is unavailable for public review.Stotsky said proven English and math teachers and college professors did not help in the development, but should have been.The two English language arts standards writers, David Coleman and Susan Pimentel, never taught English, majored in English or published anything on curriculum or instruction, Stotsky said."That’s one of the more bizarre aspects of the whole project," she said.A parent of a Mendon-Upton School District student, Michael Watson, said there is no law forbidding students from opting out of the PARCC test, which contradicts statements from state education officials."As a taxpayer and parent, I’m upset that state officials are not being transparent," he said.Zachary Comeau can be reached at 508-634-7556 and zcomeau@wickedlocal.com. Follow him on Twitter @ZComeau_MDN.